Five essays on standardization in the realm of services

Fünf Aufsätze zur Normung im Dienstleistungsbereich

This PhD thesis consists of five essays contributing to the extant literature on services and standardization. The existing strand of standardization literature has been traditionally devoted to technical standardization of tangible products and technologies since services have been of no significance in standardization for decades. Moreover, within the increasingly important service literature, the issue of standardization has only been addressed very broadly or from the perspective of internatThis PhD thesis consists of five essays contributing to the extant literature on services and standardization. The existing strand of standardization literature has been traditionally devoted to technical standardization of tangible products and technologies since services have been of no significance in standardization for decades. Moreover, within the increasingly important service literature, the issue of standardization has only been addressed very broadly or from the perspective of international marketing discussing standardization and adaptation strategies. Accordingly, scholars from both disciplines so far paid only little attention to the topic of standardization in the realm of services. Additionally motivated by the growing significance of services in modern economies, which meanwhile partly spilled-over into standardization, this PhD thesis attempts to bridge this research gap. Economically, services are intangible as opposed to physical goods. Therewith, services are perishable, delivered and consumed simultaneously, and more or less inseparable from the service provider as well as the customer. At first sight, all these key characteristics do not seem to fit into the traditional understanding of standardized products that are mass produced and shipped around the world. Economies of scale in consequence of variety reducing standards are difficult to generate within the “production of services”. However, service standards might take on other well-known functions of standards such as facilitating a minimum level of quality in order to correct for adverse selection or negative externalities. Service standards might also reduce information asymmetries and therewith reduce transaction costs or facilitate trade. Accordingly, this research aims at answering the question as to what extent service standardization (at least partly) functions in a manner similar to the traditional understanding of (technical) standardization. In somewhat simplified terms, this research question is to be largely answered in the affirmative. However, the results suggest not only similarities but also some peculiarities.…